JEFFERSON TOWNSHIP — A police chief says the targeted killing of a former officer working as a security guard is senseless.
Darnell Pate was gunned down Monday morning as he left work at Napoleon’s Palace off Germantown Pike.
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Sheriff’s deputies are working to uncover the person or persons responsible for waiting for Pate to walk to his car and then gun him down.
Deputies found him dead in his vehicle, news that hit hard with family, friends, people he worked with in Ohio police departments, and even all the way in South Dakota.
“Unfortunately, it struck us here, he was part of our family,” said Geody VanDewater, the police chief in Sturgis, South Dakota.
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News Center 7 reached out to VanDewater, who posted a picture he took with Pate as a tribute after learning of his death.
“Darnell and a couple of his partners came out and worked with us for a couple of years,” he said.
Sturgis, South Dakota is the home of the world’s largest motorcycle rally every year.
Thousands of bikers descend on the tiny town, and so do a lot of law enforcement professionals working for the 10 days of the rally as Sturgis police officers.
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“Handle calls, make arrests like our regular officers, partnered with our full-time guys,” VanDewater said.
VanDewater said the picture with Pate was not just a click-and-forget honoring people who helped out. Pate worked the rally for three years in a row and the chief said his constant smile and personality made him well-known and well-liked across the entire department.
“Everyone that knew Darnell is taking this pretty tragically and it’s impacting us pretty bad,” VanDewater said.
VanDewater said all of his officers are watching Dayton news reports closely and are hopeful the people responsible will be tracked down.
“Unfortunately this senseless act, hopefully, it doesn’t go unnoticed, Darnell deserved better than that,” VanDewater said.
Sheriff’s deputies did say they know whoever gunned Pate down used a stolen vehicle that they dumped.
They have not yet identified a motive for the targeted killing and what it might relate to.
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